Vegetable washing machine



June 22, 1943. J. CHRISTIAN VEGETABLE vmsame MACHINE Filed Aug. 21.1941

Patented June 22, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT QFFlCE 2 Claims.

This invention relates to mechanism for washing vegetables, fruits and other units of variable size and configuration, and more particularly to an apparatus for washing celery.

Various types of apparatus have heretofore been provided for washing celery; however, so far as is known such apparatus does not operate to conserve a material part of the water supply by twice using a portion of the water. To this end it .is an object of my invention to so construct and arrange the parts of a celery washing apparatus that a portion of the water used for washing the celery may be used for subsequent washing operations.

A further object of my invention is to provide a washing apparatus including a single, compact unit, said unit comprising a water-transmitting spray conduit surrounding a conveyor, which passes through the unit, said conduit being constructed to direct toward the conveyor streams of water in a plurality of planes extending at an angle to the plane of the conveyor.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide. in a single celery washing unit, a spray conduit and water receiving and transmitting means associated with said conduit, said mean being so constructed as to effect a re-use of a portion of the wash water used to clean the celery.

My invention also comprehends the provision of a celery washing apparatus including a housing, a conveyor which moves through the housing, a spray conduit encircling the conveyor, means within the housing for receiving two diiTe-rent w-ashwa'ters emitted from the conduit and means for transmitting one of said wash waters back to the spray conduit to thereby conserve a portion of the water used for washing the celery.

Other objects of my invention and features of novelty will appear more fully hereinafter from a consideration of the following detailed description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein several forms of the invention are illustrated. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawing is employed for illustration only and is not to be taken as a definition of the limits of the invention, reference being had for this purpose to the appended claims. 7

'In the drawing, wherein similar reference characters refer to like parts throughout the several views:

Figure l is a side view partly in section of one embodiment of the washing apparatus constituting my invention;

Figure 2 is a front view. partly in section of the parts of the apparatus shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a front view of a circular shaped spray conduit which may be used in the washing apparatus of my invention;

Figure 4 is a side View, partly in section of the preferred embodiment of the washing apparatus constituting m invention;

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 3 disclosing a square shaped spray conduit which may supplant the circular shapedconduit in the unit disclosed in Figure i; and

Figure 6 is a side view partly in section of a third embodiment of the washing apparatus constituting my invention.

The washing apparatus constituting my invention may be used in combination with a celery sizing apparatus and such a combination of mechanisms is disclosed in my Patent No. 2,231,435 dated February 11, 1941. This combined washing and sizing apparatusis especially adapted for the processing of celery: however, it is to be understood that the same may be used for other vegetables and/ or fruits if desired.

Referring now to Figures 1 and 2 disclosing one embodiment of the washing apparatus constituting my inventitn, this apparatus includes a tubular spray conduit l0 rectangular in outline, having upper and. lower sections connected with end sections, the top section communicating with a watersupply conduit l2. As disclosed in Figures 1. and the spray conduit H3 is supported from the conduit l2 and lies within a box-shaped housing M. The aforementioned sections of the conduit are so disposed that they completely encircle a conveyor 55 and ce ery l"! carried'thereby. Each section above referred to is provided with a plurality of openings, certain of the openings in each section being arranged to direct streams of washing water toward the celery as it approaches the plane of the spray conduit while the remaining outlets are so arranged as to direct streams of water toward the celery after it passes through the plane ofsaid conduit. As disclosed in Figure 1 of the drawing, these streams of water he in. planes extending at an angle to the plane of the conveyor. Since the conveyor is of open construction, the foregoing construction enables the celery to be efficiently washed since the treams of water directed toward the celery remove all of the dirt on the outside of the stalks while the streams directed toward the celery after it passes through the plane of the conduit are effective to dislodge, any dirt which may be confined between the stalks. Thereafter, the washed celery is passed from the conveyor IE to a conveyor l8 which moves at a higher rate of speed and hence effects a spacing of the celery units along the length thereof. The conveyor I8 constitutes a portion of the sizing apparatus referred to supra and disclosed in detail in the aforementioned Patent No. 2,231,435.

In certain instances, as for example where the water supply for washing purposes is limited, it is desirable to conserve a portion of the water used for washing purposes. To this end, the housing I4 is provided with a bottom portion 26 having a partition 22, the ridge of the latter extending from one side of the housing to the other and being located directly beneath the plane of the spray conduit H]. In this manner, the water directed toward the celery and which obviously will be quite dirty may be passed through an opening 24 to the sewer while the water directed toward the celery as it leaves the washing apparatus and 4 which is collected to the right of the partition 22, as viewed in Figure 1, may be passed through outlet 26 to a supply tank for re-use. This water passing through outlet 26 will be relatively clean since it serves only to dislodge loose particles of dirt between the limbs of the celery. It will be understood that suitable inlet and outlet openings 28 and 30 are provided in the housing l4 for permitting entry and exit of the celery to be washed.

There is disclosed in Figures 3 and tubular spray conduits which are respectively circular and square shaped in outline and which conduits may be substituted for the rectangular shaped conduit disclosed in Figure 2.

Referring now to the apparatus disclosed in Figure 4 and which constitutes the preferred embodiment of my invention, the circular conduit 32- of Figure 3 is supported by a partition 34 secured to the base of a trough 36. The conduit 32 is preferably provided with two rows of openings, one of said rows being positioned to direct a cone shaped stream 38 of wash water toward the celery as it approaches the plane of the conduit, that is a plane perpendicular to the plane of a conveyor 40, The other row of openings is so arranged as to direct a cone shaped stream 42 of water toward the celery after it passes through the plane of the conduit. The rows of openings may be spaced further apart for smaller bunches of celery and spaced closer for larger bunches.

. The partition 34 divides the trough into two sections indicated by the reference numerals 44 and 46, the section 44 being provided with an opening 48 leading to the sewer. The section 46 of the-trough is provided with an opening 59 interconnecting said section with a tank 52 secured to the under side of the base portion of the trough. To one of the side walls of the tank 52 there is secured a member54, said member serving as a support for an L-shaped lever member 56. This lever member is pivotally mounted, that is it is fulcrumed at 58 to the support member 54 and to one end of the lever member 56 there is secured a valve member 66. To the other end of the lever member there is secured a float 62. The valve member 66 is cone shaped at one of its ends, said end being seatable upon the tapered edge of a conduit 64 fitted within-an opening 65 in one of the side walls of the tank. This conduit 64 is shaped, as is disclosed in Figure 4, to fit within a housing 66 and is connected at its other end to an opening in the top of the spray conduit 32. A pump indicated by the letter P is incorporated in the conduit 64 and the fluid transmitting means is completed by a conduit 68 interconnecting the conduit 64 with a source of clean water such as an artesian well. It is to be noted that the conduit 68 is connected to the conduit 64 at a point between the pump P and the tank 52.

Describing now the operation of the washing apparatus disclosed in Figure 4, the bunch of celery H supported upon the conveyor l6 first moves into the cone shaped stream 38 of water and then into the cone shaped stream 42 to clean the celery in the manner previously described.

The stream of water 38 removes all of the dirt on the outside of the stalks; accordingly, this portion of the wash water which falls into the section 44 of the trough or pan 36, is quite dirty. The stream of water 42 which removes the dirt confined between the celery stalks is not nearly as dirty as the first wash water; accordingly, with the mechanism of my invention this second wash water is used over again in the washing operation.

This operation will be apparent from an inspection of Figure 4 of the drawing wherein it will be seen that the second wash water flows from the trough section 46 through the opening 50 into the tank 52. From the tank the second wash water fiows through the opening 65 into the conduit 64 there to mix with clean water supplied, via the conduit 68, from the 'artesian well or other source of supply. The pump P which may be driven by an electric motor, not shown, draws water from both the tank 52 and the artesian well and forces this water through the conduit 64 into the supply conduit 32. If desired, the pump operating electric motor and the electric motor for driving the conveyor may be controlled by a common switch so that the two motors operate at the same time.

Describing the purpose of the valve 60, if there is but a small amount of water in the tank .52 the float 62 will perforce drop, thereby moving said valve to close the opening 65, thus preventing air from entering the conduit 64. Under normal conditions, however, the Water in the tank 52 at the level or approximately the level disclosed in Figure 4, that is at a height sufiicient to effect an opening movement of the valve 60. The parts of the apparatus constituting my invention are so constructed and arranged as to prevent water from spilling out of the trough 36 and as described above, the construction is such as to prevent air from entering the conduit 64. Furthermore, the adjustment of the parts of the mechanism,'including the rate of operation of the. pump P, the speed of movement of the conveyor 40, and the size of the drain opening 48 are such as to insure an effective cleaning of the celery with a minimum of water; for the water which is pumped from the well or other source of supply eventually finds its way into the drain opening.

Describing now that embodiment of my invention disclosed in Figure 6, circular shaped spray conduits 10 and 12 are supported within a housing 14, by conduits l6 and 18 respectively, said conduits having incorporated therein pumps indicated by the letters P and P The celery moves to the left upon a conveyor 82 and into the path of the first wash water indicated by a cone shaped stream 84 emitted from the spray conduit 12. The dirty water falls into a pan 86, thence through an opening in the pan to which is connected a conduit 88 leading to the sewer. The celery is then moved by the conveyor into the path of another cone shaped stream 90 of wash water and this water falls from the celery into a tank 92 which is connected by the conduit 18 to the intake side of the pump P The second and relatively clean wash water from this tank 92 is thus used over again as a first wash water in the process of cleaning the celery. The second and very clean wash water is forcibly drawn from any convenient source of supply and is then forced through the conduit 16 and into the spray conduit 10.

There is thus provided a simple, compact and efiective washing apparatus, all of the parts of which are housed within a single housing. In the preferred embodiment of my invention a single spray conduit effects two distinct washing operations of the celery or other article to be washed, the mechanism being so constructed that the water from the second washing is re-used as the first washing water, thereby using but a limited amount of water in the washing operation.

I claimf 1. A washing apparatus for celery and the like comprising a housing, a movable conveyor passing through said housing for supporting the article to be washed, a spray conduit encircling the conveyor and having fluid outlets angularly disposed with relation to each other for directing washing fluid at a plurality of angles against the article, a reservoir in the base of the housing for collecting a portion of the washing fluid, a trough adjacent the base of the housing for collecting all of the washing fluid, and means including a partition disposed within said trough and under the spray conduit for dividing the washing fluid,

said partition and conduit being so constructed and arranged that that portion of washing fluid expelled from one side of the conduit is conducted to waste while that portion of the fluid expelled from the other side of the conduit is conducted to the reservoir.

2. A washing apparatus for celery and the like comprising a housing, a movable conveyor passing through said housing for supporting the article to be washed, a spray conduit encircling the conveyor and having fluid outlets angularly disposed with relation to each other for directing washing fluid towards the celery as it approaches the conduit and also as it moves away from the conduit, a reservoir in the base of said housing for collecting a portion of the washing fluid, a trough adjacent the base of the housing for collecting all of the washing fluid, fluid transmitting means interconnecting said reservoir and spray conduit, a pump incorporated with the fluid transmitting means, valve means within the reservoir for controlling the fluid transmitting means, and a partition disposed directly beneath the spray conduit within the trough for dividing the washing fluid so constructed and arranged that that portion of the fluid directed towards the celery as it approaches the conduit is conducted to waste while that portion directed towards the celery after it passes the conduit is conducted to said reservoir.

JACK CHRISTIAN. 

